About
Curbside Carnies is an event services business for hire in Brisbane, QLD.
Curbside Carnies started as a mobile circus during the Victorian lockdowns, built to deliver contactless shows when nothing else could happen. Once restrictions lifted they pushed a small portable stage out onto the street and gave away pop-up performances from the city out to country towns. The project runs Australia-wide now, working with councils and community organisations on programs aimed at bringing people back out in public. Most bookings land in one of a few shapes: performers roving through a crowd, hands-on workshops, a supervised play space, a pop-up show, or a longer circus program built for a specific group. Roving needs almost no set-up time; a pop-up show wants up to half an hour. All performers hold public liability insurance and Working With Children Checks.
Watch
The show
Curbside Carnies work in a few different shapes, and the one you pick sets the feel of the day. Roving performers move through a crowd and pull people in as they go. A pop up show gathers everyone in one spot for a set piece. There are hands on workshops, a supervised play space for younger guests, and longer circus programs put together for a particular group. Councils and community organisations make up a good slice of the work, so the team is used to open, public settings where the audience turns up rather than buys a ticket. Every performer holds public liability insurance and a Working With Children Check.
On the day
It shifts with the booking. Roving performers need next to nothing, since the act moves through the crowd and there's no stage to build. A pop-up show is the bigger ask, and up to half an hour should be allowed for it. Workshops and play spaces sit somewhere in between, so flag the format you're after when you enquire and the timing can be worked out from there.
Insurance and paperwork
Public liability insured
Working with Children Check
